Posted: Wed, Jan 8, 2003, 9:04 AM ET (1404 GMT)
A rookie astronaut will replace a veteran cosmonaut on an International Space Station spacewalk later this month, NASA announced Tuesday. The agency said that Don Pettit will replace Nikolai Budarin on a spacewalk scheduled for January 15. Pettit will be joined by Ken Bowersox, the third member of the Expedition Six crew who had originally been assigned to accompany Budarin during the spacewalk. NASA said in a statement that "on-orbit medical data raised concerns" that Budarin may be medically unfit to perform the strenuous activities required for a spacewalk. NASA declined to release further details, citing medical privacy concerns, although an AFP article said that Budarin's cardiovascular system "responded excessively" during tests last month. Budarin spent nearly ten months in space during two stays on the Mir space station. The EVA was scheduled for last month but delayed because of the medical issue, although at that time NASA declined to mention which astronaut's health issues caused the delay. Both Pettit and Bowersox will be making their first spacewalks. Pettit was added to the crew last summer after Don Thomas was removed from the crew because of concerns regarding radiation exposure on previous spaceflights.

Related Links:

•  NASA press release
•  SpaceRef article
•  AFP article
•  Florida Today article
•  AP article